Hydraulic spike puller



June 15, 1964 E. M. sHEPERD ETAL 3,137,479

. HYDRAULIC SPIKE FULLER Filed Feb. 27, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 June 16, 1964 E. M. sHEPl-:RD ETAL 3,137,479

HYDRAULIC SPIKE FULLER Filed Feb. 27. 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 June 16, 1964 y E. M. SHEPERD ETAL 3,137,479

HYDRAULIC SPIKE FULLER 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Feb. 27, 1962 afer @e Caffe# June 16, 1964 E. M. SHEPERD ETAL 3,137,479

HYDRAULIC SPIKE FULLER Filed Feb. 27, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 June 16, 1964 E. M. sHEPERD ETAL HYDRAULIC SPIKE FULLER 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 27, 1962 United States Patent 3,137,479 HYDRAULIC SPIKE PULLER Ervin M. Shepard, Milwaukee, and Edward H. Krause,

Jr., Hales Corners, Wis., assignors to Nordherg Manufacturing Company, Milwaukee, Wis., a corporation of Wisconsin Filed Feb. 27, 1962, Ser. N 176,064

13 Claims. (Cl. 2541-18) This invention is in the field of spike puller-s to be used to pull the spikes on railroad tracks and is concerned with a hydraulically operated spike puller, although it may be otherwise.

A primary object of the invention is a spike puller for use on railroad track which is compact, simple and fast.

Another object is a spike puller of the above type which is designed for pulling spikes on both rails, but is, nevertheless, a one man machine.

Another object is a spike puller in which the operator bears none of its weight. l

Another object is a spike puller-.with simple controls.

Another object is a spike puller with pulling claws oi the gripping type to pull any size or condition oi spike.

Another object is a spike puller with pulling claws having replaceable wearing parts.

Other objects will appear from time to time in the ensuing specification and drawings in which:

FIGURE l is a perspective of the spike puller in set off condition; Y

FIGURE 2 is a perspective of the spike puller in spike pulling position; v

FIGURE 3 is a perspective of the spike pulling gun and its supporting mechanism, partly broken away for clarity;

FIGURE 4 is a longitudinal section through the telescopic mounting for the gun itself;

FIGURE 5 is a section along line 5-5 of FIGURE '3;

FIGURE 6 is a partial perspective;

FIGURE 7 is a lschematic of the traversing carriage; and

FIGURES 8, 9 and 10 are side views of the spike pulling gun, partly broken away, showing various operating positions.

In FIGURES 1 and 2, the invention `has been shown with a generally square or rectangular frame 10 made up of longitudinally disposed side tubes 12 and 14 interconnected by laterally disposed front and rear angles 16 and 18 or the like. These parts are suitably connected by Welding or otherwise and it will be noted that the side tubes extend somewhat beyond each end of the frame and support a bearing 20 at each corner for a Isuitable flanged wheel 22.

The frame supports a suitablesource of power, for example a gasoline engine 24 mounted at 26 on a tank or reservoir 28 for hydraulic uid or the like, which in turn is mounted on the frame. The engine drives a pump 30 which draws fluid from the tank through a suitable line 32 and sends it through a suitable line 34'to a valve 36 mounted on the frame. The valve, in turn, controls the supply of lluid through a line 38 to a spike puller, to be explained in detail hereinafter, or returns iluid by a line 40 to the tank or sump.

It will be noted that the power source, pump, valve, tank, etc. are mounted more or less on the front or the frame. A cross slide, indicated generally at 42, is mounted across the rear. The cross slide is made up of suitable rails 44 which, in the form shown, are oppositely disposed channels, facing inwardly toward each other, suitably welded or otherwise connected to framemembers 12 and 14 and extending beyond the outer ends of the frame so that these tracks or slides or channels overlap both g 3,137,479 rPatentedJune 16, 1964 lice slide might be approximately, but not necessarily, about the same length as a tie, or somewhat less. In any event, one end of the cross slide may be closed bya suitable flat 46 welded or otherwise held across the ends of the channels while the other end has a plate 48, removably mounted across it by bolts 50 or the Vlike to allow the spike puller to be mounted and removed. f

The cross slide serves as a track orchannel for a traversing carriage, indicated generally at 52. As shown more in detail in FIGURE 3, it may include upper and lower carriages 54 and 56 pivoted to each other at 58 on a suitable Washer'type bearing or spacer 60. The lower carriage 56, which is in the form of a plate, rectangular,

square or otherwise, has back-to-back angle irons 62 suitablyy connected by welding or otherwise along the front and rear edge and closed on each end by a cross plate 64 to thus define a square or rectangular box belowthe lower carriage. The dimensioning is such that the box will lit between the channels 44 of the cross slide. k Suitable rollers or wheels, 66 rear and 68 forward, project from the sides of the box and it into the channels k44 so that the entire carriage may roll back and forth. To prevent the carriage ,from twisting or canting in the channels, stability rollers r70 are mounted about vertical axes on llanges 72,

welded or otherwise connected to extend from the ends of the box so that the rollers 70 will bear against the inside of the channels 44 of the cross slide. The result is that :the weight of the vtraversing carriage is carried by the 'rollers 66 and 68 while stability is maintained bythe rollers 70.

Since the upper carriage 54 is pivoted at 58 on the lower carriage, we have the etect of a turntable. A frame in the fonn of four upstanding, inclined legs or angles '74,

'suitablyV welded or otherwise connected tothe upper surface of the upper carriage, extend up to bearing or pillow blocks 76, suitably spaced from each other to support a pivot 78 for the spike puller, indicated generally at 80A The spike puller is mounted on a boom 82 which is tele'- scopic, an innertube or rod 84 litting in an outer tube Y 86, the outer tube 86 being connected to the pivot 78 by a U-shaped bracket 88, the legs of which are welded or otherwise suitably -connected to the outside of the outer tube S6 with the pivot 78 extending through that portion of the bracket above the louter tube.

As shown in FIGUREl 4, the boom may have Suitable bearings 90 between the inner and outer tubes with a seal 92 at one end and a closing cap 94 at the other. A

boltL 96 extend-s from the cap 94 inside of the end of the inner tuberto thereby deiine or limit the travel kot the telescopic connection.

The spike .puller 80 may have a power cylinder 98k which, in detail, may be the same as that shownkin U.S. Patent No. 2,797,889, issued July'2, 1957, or otherwise. In any event, suitable plates 100 are mounted on the outside'of the piston k98, one on eachf side, Iand heldy by a clamp 99, With ears through which handlebars 102 extend. `A yoke 104 straddles the plates to provide a pivotal conf nection at 106 on each side while the yoke is connected to the outer end of the inner tube 84 of the telescopic boom. Thus, movement of the handlebars will pivot the 'each end. The guides have'yokes 1.16 at eachV end which connect to flats at each end,'one` 118 welded or otherwise connected to the upper carriage, and the other 120 on the outer tube of the telescopic boom.

We mount a spring biased lock 122 of any suitable type on the upper carriage which may have a handle 124 for the user to operate. The lower carriage has suitable openings to accept the lock, and we position one so that the upper carriage may be locked in an operating position, such as shown in FIGURE 2, with the boom extending longitudinally or in a traveling position, such as shown in FIGURE 1, with the boom extending laterally. Thus, the spike puller may be pivoted to the traveling position and we connect, by welding or otherwise, a .suitable channel 126 to the bottom of the cross slide as a rest or support for the lower -end of the spike puller, as shown in FIGURE 1.

The handles of the handlebar may have suitable controls or levers that operate the spike puller andthe brake. For example, the right handle 126 lmay have a lever `connected to a boden wire 128 lrunning to the valve 36. Thus, manipulation of this lever will supply or cut E hydraulic Huid to the power cylinder of the spike puller by operating the valve 36. The other handle 130 may have a lever connected by a boden wire 132 or the like extending through a suitable guide 134 connected to the frame and, in turn, running to brakes 136 which bear against the wheels on the left side in FIGURE 2.

As shown in FIGURE 7, we offset the wheels 66 and 68 on the traversing carriage somewhat to counteract the weight of the boom and spike puller. For example, the rear wheels 66 are set on anaxis somewhat lower than the front Wheels 68 so that the rear Wheels bear on the bottom flange of the rear channels 44 while the front wheels bear -against the top ange of the `front channels 44. Thus, the turntable will be maintained in a generally horizontal and stable position during operation.

The power cylinder 98 of the spike puller may have a suitable 'housing or guide 138 connected to the lower -end thereof which may have a generally open interior and open on the lower end thereof with side slots 140, lif desired. The Vhousing may be generally rectangular or square in cross section on the inside and serves as a vertical `guide for the operating jaws of the spike puller, shown more in detail in FIGURES 8` through 10. The piston rod 142 extends into the guide and is pivoted at 144 to a pair of pivot pieces 146 one on each side of the piston rod, each having an upper arm extending up to a roller 148. A non-pivoting jaw 150, which is made in the form of a yoke with a solid portion 152 at the bottom and upstanding ears 154 on each side, is connected vat 156 to the other side of the pivot pieces 146 by a pin and slot connection to allow a certain amount of play. It should be noted that the sides of the non-pivoting jaw `lit sufliciently 'snugly against the Vsides of the housing such 'that the jaw can only move up or down, much like a piston. 'It :will Lbe understood that the pivot pieces 146 extend down inside Aof the upstanding ears 154 of the non-pivoting jaws, as shown in broken lines in FIGURES 8 through l0. A pivoting jaw .158 has a-solid, somewhat wider, lower portion 160 and an upstanding ear 162 which also extends up inside of the ears 154 of the non-pivoting jaw. A third section of an -intermediate thickness, as .at 164, extends up inside of the ears on the non-pivoting jaw and is pivoted thereto at 166. The upper end of the ear 162 is connected tothe lower end of the pivot piece 1641by a pin and slot connection 168. v

Both the non-pivoting jaw and the pivoting jaw may have laterally ,disposed -slots across their lower ends to accept undercut spike jaws 170 vdovetailed somewhat at the top, as at 172, and held therein by a removable pin 'or the like 174. The bottom ofthe frame orguide 138 may have a wear-resistant surface or coating or `hard weld'176, if desired.

We may mount one or more set oit wheels 178 on one side, shown in this case as two such wheels, each being mounted on arms 188 pivoted to the frame and adapted to be adjusted to any one of three possible positions by pulling spring biased bar 182 outwardly and moving the arms 188 up or down until the bar falls in one of the appropriate notches 184 in the segments 186, also mounted on the frame. Thus, the wheels may be in a raised position While the device is pulling spikes or may be in a lowered position so that the operator may wheelbarrow the device ott of the track. For this purpose, we may provide a handlebar 189 Welded or otherwise suitably connected to the frame and projecting from the opposite side on the forward part of the frame. The operator may stand next to the frame, facing it with his right hand on the handle 189 and his left hand on the portion designated 190 of the slide rail of the cross slide to raise the vright side, in FIGURE l, with the left side resting on the set oi wheels.

The use, operation and function of the invention are as follows: j

We provide a power operated -spike puller which, although it is shown as manually movable on the rails, may have power to the wheels. But since it is a quite small unit, power operated wheels are not considered necessary.

One advantage of the present arrangement is that the operator may push the buggy or carriage along until it is positioned where the spike puller '80 is fairly close to a spike to be pulled. The operator then closes the lever on the left 4handlebar 130, which actuates the brakes and holds the carriage in place. He then moves thespike puller either in or out by the telescopic boom until the jaws are positioned directly over lthe spike to be pulled. Also, the traversing carriage may be moved to either one way or the other, depending 'upon whether the spike` is inside or outside of lthe rail, to get accurate alignment. The spike puller may then be depressed untilthe jaws grip the spike head.

This can all be done very simply and .easily since the weight of the spike puller is counterbalanced kby the spring arrangement under the telescopic boom. YOnce in position, the operator actuates the lever on the right handlebar which operates the valve to supply high ypressure Huid to the power cylinder above the jaws which in turn operates the jaws.

The operator may easily flip the set 01T wheels 178 to their raised position, as shown in FIGURE 2, when the machine is working. But when he wishes to set olf to allow traic to pass, both wheels may be put in the lower position in FIGURE 1 and then the device wheelbarrows oit the track. When either traveling or during set oi, the upper carriage may be unlocked and pivoted yto ythe position shown in FIGURE 1 in .which the boom Vis lateral and the end vof the spike puller may be .put in its socket 126. Thus, the entire machine is compact and can be wheelbarrowed without difliculty.

As shown in the various positions in FIGURES 8, 9 and 10, Athe jaws automatically close at the bottom .to grab the spike head and automatically openon thetop to release the withdrawn spike. The operator manipulates the handlebars so .that the non-pivoting jaw ,is tted .in under the spike head. Then by pressing down .on the handlebars and spike puller, the non-pivotingjaw is -forced up somewhat and the pin rises in the slot `at 15.6, which pivots the pivot pieces 146 clockwise. This moves the pin in the slot at 168 topivot the pivoting jaw`158 counterclockwise, thus bringing the other spike jaw under the vspike head. It should be noted that when'the spike puller is being carried with pressure on the non-pivoting jaw 152, the relationship of the part is such that the` pivoting jaw 169 will be pivotedopen by gravity.

When the piston .rod 142 starts its up movement, the pivoting and non-.pivoting jawsl have an ice tong action to-draw the spike up with them. Toward the topof the D stroke, the cam roller 148 on the pivot pieces will hit the top of the guide, as shown in FIGURE 10, and further movement will cause the pivot pieces 146 to pivot counterclockwise. Through the pin and slot connections 156 and 168, this will move pivoting jaw 160 clockwise, thereby opening the jaws and dropping the spike.

Thus, the jaws automatically open at the top of the stroke to drop the spike and automatically close at the bottom when the operator pushes the non-pivoting jaw 152 down against the rail plate. Thus, at both extremes or ends of its movement, the jaws are completely automatic.

One advantage of the structure shown is that the jaw inserts 170 may be removed and replaced when worn, and this may be done simply and quickly in the field. Further, these inserts may be coated or supplied with a surface hardening or made from a special steel to withstand the abrasion and wear from contact with the plates and spike heads. Thus, the entire jaw mechanism does not require replacement.

While we have shown and described the preferred form and suggested several variations of our invention, it should be understood that suitable additional variations, substitutions, modications, changes and alterations may be made without departing from the inventions fundamental theme.

We claim:

1. In a spike puller for use on railroad track and the like, a wheeled frame adapted to roll along the track, a cross slide rigidly mounted on the frame disposed laterally to the rails and of a length to span the rails when the frame is mounted thereon, a traversing carriage on the cross slide adapted to be moved thereon laterally to the rails to be positioned over either rail, and a spike puller pivoted to the traversing carriage by a universal connection so that it may be accurately positioned over a spike to be pulled.

2. The structure of claim l further characterized in that the spike puller is connected on the traversing carriage by a telescopic connection and adapted to be moved manually toward and away from the traversing carriage.

3. The structure of claim 1 further characterized by and including a spring counterbalance between the spike puller and traversing carriage balancing the weight of the spike puller.

4. The structure of claim 1 further characterized in that the traversing carriage includes a lower carriage adapted to move back and forth laterally on the cross slide, and an upper carriage pivoted about a vertical axis to the lower carriage, the spike puller including a boom pivoted about a horizontal axis on the upper carriage, and a manually operable lock for holding the upper carriage in at least two positions, one with the boom disposed longitudinally to the rails in operating position, and the other with the boom disposed laterally to the rails in traveling position.

5. The structure of claim l further characterized in that the spike puller is connected to the traversing carriage by a boom, the spike puller being mounted on the outer end of the boom, handle bars connected to and straddling the spike puller, and a control on the handle bars for operating the spike puller.

6. The structure of claim 5 further characterized in that the spike puller is hydraulically operated, a hydraulic power source on the frame, a hydraulic connection between the power source and the spike puller, and a connection between the controls on the handle bars and the hydraulic power source so that the spike puller may be energized and de-energized by the operator.

7. In a spike puller for use on railroad track and the like, a wheeled frame adapted to roll along the track, a cross slide rigidly mounted on the frame disposed generally laterally to the rails and of a length to span the rails when the frame is mounted thereon, a traversing carriage on the cross slide adapted to be moved thereon laterally to the rails to be positioned over either rail, a power operated spike puller mounted on the carriage and extending therefrom, a universal connection between the spike puller and the carriage so that the spike puller may be pivoted and moved freely in all directions, and a springk counterbalance connected between the spike puller and the carriage generally balancing the weight of the spike puller so that the spike puller will be substantially weightless to the operator.

8. The structure of claim 7 further characterized by and including a telescopic connection between the spike puller and the carriage so that the spike puller may be moved by the operator toward and away from the carriage and at the same time may be freely pivoted by the universal connection.

9. The structure of claim 8 further characterized in that the cross slide includes two generally parallel spaced rails disposed horizontally, the carriage having rollers engaging each rail with a superstructure rising above it.

10. The structure of claim 9 further characterized in that the telescopic connection includes telescopic tubes, one mounted on the carriage superstructure and another connected to the spike puller, and further including stops on the tubes for determining the extremes of telescopic movement thereof.

11. The structure of claim 10 further characterized in that the spring counterbalance includes a compression spring held by a telescopic structure enclosing the ends of the spring, one end of the telescopic structure being mounted on the carriage, the other end being mounted on one of the telescopic connections.

l2. The structure of claim 1l further characterized in that the universal connection includes a vertical pivot between the carriage superstructure and the base of the carriage so that the carriage superstructure may be pivoted about a vertical axis, a horizontal pivot between the carriage superstructure and the telescopic connection so that the telescopic connection and spike puller may be pivoted, as a unit, about a horizontal axis, and a pivot between the telescopic connection and the spike puller so that the spike puller may be pivoted relative to the telescopic connection.

13. The structure of claim l2 further characterized in that the tube of the telescopic connection on which the spike puller is mounted is free to rotate relative to the other tube so that the spike puller may be pivoted about a horizontal axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,893,719 Talboys Jan. 10, 1933 2,346,901 Branden Apr. 18, 1944 2,697,872 Armstrong Dec. 28, 1954 2,732,173 Hursh Jan. 24, 1956 2,797,889 Talboys July 2, 1957 2,851,300 Thayer Sept. 9, 8 2,911,190 Creason Nov. 3, 1959 2,945,674 Hursh July 19, 1960 2,950,525 Duncan et al Aug. 30, 11960 OTHER REFERENCES Publication-An advertisement by Fairmont Railway Motors, Inc. in the periodical: Railway Track and Structures, March 1957 at page 54. 

1. IN A SPIKE PULLER FOR USE ON RAILROAD TRACK AND THE LIKE, A WHEELED FRAME ADAPTED TO ROLL ALONG THE TRACK, A CROSS SLIDE RIGIDLY MOUNTED ON THE FRAME DISPOSED LATERALLY TO THE RAILS AND OF A LENGTH TO SPAN THE RAILS WHEN THE FRAME IS MOUNTED THEREON, A TRAVERSING CARRIAGE ON THE CROSS SLIDE ADAPTED TO BE MOVED THEREON LATERALLY TO THE RAILS TO BE POSITIONED OVER EITHER RAIL, AND A SPIKE PULLER PIVOTED TO THE TRAVERSING CARRIAGE BY A UNIVERSAL CONNECTION SO THAT IT MAY BE ACCURATELY POSITIONED OVER A SPIKE TO BE PULLED. 